


Invalid

by Piggie50



Series: Arthur is Not an Artist, Merlin, Surprisingly, Is [4]
Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Rock Band, First Kiss, Jealous Arthur, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-07-27
Updated: 2014-07-27
Packaged: 2018-02-10 17:20:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,803
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2033445
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Piggie50/pseuds/Piggie50
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Arthur accompanies Merlin to a Camelot practice session, and he finds that there are some things he doesn’t quite know about his new boyfriend.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Invalid

Merlin decides that Arthur should come with him to the Camelot practice that he himself is technically crashing.

Arthur isn’t sure why he agrees, but it might have something to do with those big, innocent blue eyes of Merlin’s, and the fact that he actually likes all of the members of the band itself.

So, Arthur drives them there in his expensive red Mercedes, and makes sure that everyone knows that it is Arthur that Merlin is with tonight.

The Camelot practice is held at Leon’s own house, a big two story place that is painted cream on the outside, and has golden walls on the inside.

Leon lets them in with a smile, as though he had been expecting them to show up, and allows them to sit in his living room while he gathers up the snacks and drinks he had promised to fetch for his band mates.

Arthur looks around the room with interest, noting the way that Merlin flops himself haphazardly into a plushy brown loveseat as though he lives here himself.

Tasteful paintings hang around the room, and a huge television takes up quite a bit of the area. It looks like a normal den, except for the fact that every spare inch of space is covered with Camelot merchandise and pictures of the band.

Arthur is staring at a picture of Merlin and Leon smiling together when the owner of the house comes to get them, a large tray in his hands filled with an assortment of food and bottled water.

Leon chatters aimlessly as he leads them down to the basement, “I soundproofed it myself,” he tells Arthur proudly, which makes the blonde frown a bit.

Down below, everyone is seated around, tending to their instruments, and talking in low tones.

Gwaine is the first to look up, “Merlin! I was wondering when you’d show up…and you brought the Princess, lovely.”

Merlin smiles sweetly at his friend, even though Arthur rolls his own eyes. Honestly, just because he let out a manly yell one time at a cockroach Gwaine has no right to call him names.

“I think we should get started then,” Leon tells them as he sets down the tray on a spare coffee table, “I was thinking we should open with ‘Valiant’ at the next concert. Everyone seems to like it.”

Leon is the lead vocalist, and also the leader of the band, though no one will say it out loud.

Lance waves a hand, “will I get a solo this time?”

He and Gwaine both play guitars, and Lance always seems to be pushed out of the limelight by Gwaine’s abilities with the instrument…not to mention how the crowd loves the way Gwaine can switch hands while playing.

Leon shrugs, “we can try to fit that in with ‘Future Queen’ I suppose. Anything else that needs to be addressed before we get started?”

Elyan flicks his sticks into the air, letting himself hit a drum before shaking his head; Percy, the keyboardist, looking away from the issue.

Leon opens his mouth again to speak when another voice suddenly cuts in, “we need to work on crowd control and how you all deal with the audience.”

Arthur is surprised by the way that Merlin whirls around, a huge smile on his face as he looks towards the stairs where the voice came from.

“Freya!” He shouts, rushing forward to hug her, making Arthur feel a pang of something in his chest.

“Freya” turns out to be a very pretty girl around their age, her dark hair pulled away from her face with a clip, and her brown eyes sparkling at them all.

“Hello all. Gwaine, you said you would try to keep your clothes on the next performance…are you going to stick to that promise?”

Gwaine grumbles under his breath, looking down at his guitar to pretend tune it.

Freya then turns to look at Elyan, “and you promised me that you would try not to get so angry when fans tried to touch you.”

Elyan frowns at her, pumping the pedals on the drum set a few times in annoyance, “I’ll try.” He finally amends, and the girl seems to take that as a promise.

“Alright then,” she finally says, “I want you all to practice hard. I’ve been talking with some of the agents, and they want to be there at the next concert. You’re really becoming quite popular!”

They all twitter excitedly about that for a moment before Freya turns away to take a seat on one of the bean bag chairs (that Gwaine had found in a dumpster) positioned in the corner of the room.

With that out of the way the boys’ begin preparing themselves again, finishing the final touches on their instruments, and Leon taking a big gulp of water.

Arthur sidles closer to his boyfriend (though that term is still semi-new), “who is she?”

Merlin glances at him, eyes shining happily, “Freya is the band’s manager. After I quit it, I recommended her for the job, and the other’s seemed to love the idea, so, here she is. She’s really taken to it!”

Arthur finds it hard to believe sometimes that Merlin managed this rag-tag band, helping them make it big before cutting himself off from the business to continue his education.

It’s really inspiring…though Arthur will never tell him that.

“Are you two friends then,” Arthur asks, crossing his arms across his broad chest, hoping to gain Merlin’s attention that way.

It seems to work.

Merlin stares at his muscular arms for a few seconds, eyes glassy, before he registers the question and answers, “Freya and I have known each other since middle school,” he tells, “she’s one of my closest friends. I just knew that she would be perfect for the job of band manager! She’s so good with people, despite her shyness and all. She’s just great at it!”

Arthur suddenly recognized the emotion that was worming it’s way through his chest and making him pout. He was jealous!

He was jealous of the fact that his boyfriend, his Merlin, was praising someone else who wasn’t Arthur!

Feeling strange after this realization Arthur kept quiet, leaning back against the railing of the stairs and simply watching the band practice, too worried to do anything more…

After practice was over Freya stole Merlin away to talk about something, and Arthur was left to talk to Lance and Percy since Leon had gone to gargle, and Gwaine to raid his fridge, and Elyan…probably to go and lurk in the shadows.

“Is Freya a good manager,” Arthur asked carefully as he sat with the two, sipping from a spare water bottle.

Percy nodded, swallowing the pretzel he had been chewing on, “she’s really good with taking control of the situation…she really knows how to keep us all in line too!” He took another sickeningly big handful of food and stuffed it in his mouth. “When Merlin first introduced her to us,” he said through the chewing, “I thought she was just going to let us walk all over her. But…she’s proved to be really effective!”

Lance nodded alongside his band mate, “she really stepped up, especially when Merlin had to leave like that.”

That caught Arthur’s attention, “leave like what?”

Lance stared at him for a moment, “well,” he said hesitantly, “he left because his mum got sick, of course. Freya stepped in to help him, to lighten the load and all. Merlin was missing a lot of practices because he was taking care of Hunith, so Freya was helping him outside of practice to begin with. Then…Merlin saw she was good at it, and the rest is history.”

Arthur blinked rapidly…of course. How could he have been so stupid?!

When he had met Hunith a few weeks ago she had seemed frail, but Arthur thought that might have just been her…but now he could see that she was still recovering from a serious illness…

That all made Merlin’s abandonment of the band even more honorable.

He didn’t do it for himself, he did it to help his ailing mother.

Arthur felt himself falling a little bit more for the other boy now…

And with perfect timing as well.

Merlin walked back down the stairs and looked at Arthur, “hey, it’s late. Do you mind taking me home?”

Arthur shook his head, getting up from his seat and patting Lance’s shoulder on his way past.

It all made perfect sense now…

Arthur stopped in front of Merlin’s small house in the Ealdor district of the great town of Albion.

Arthur stared at the ratty house for a moment before he turned to look at the other male, “I thought you and Freya might have been together in the past,” he said as casually as he could.

It still made Merlin choke though, “w-what?!”

Arthur sighed, “the way you were smiling around her and all…I thought you two might have been romantically inclined towards one another.”

Merlin laughed at that, outright laughed!

“’Romantically inclined,’ okay, someone has been reading too many historical romance novels! And besides, I told you, Freya is just a really good friend!”

Arthur stared at the smiling boy, “so I’ve heard,” he muttered, “but that still didn’t stop my thinking that…so sorry.” He crossed his arms at that, annoyed.

Merlin chuckled once more next to him then leaned in, putting a hand on Arthur’s thigh, catching his attention in the process, and kissing him full of the lips.

It was perfect.

It was the first kiss they had shared in their three weeks of dating (as Merlin was shy, and Arthur was a prude prat for tradition and courting) and now it was the best thing that had ever happened to Arthur in his life…even beating the time that he had met Mark Hamill face to face.

Merlin pulled back a moment later, cheeks flushed as he stared at Arthur in the dark.

Arthur stared back before tugging him back in again, savoring the feel and taste of Merlin before he tore himself away, noticing the light coming from the kitchen of Merlin’s house.

“You should go in now, I think,” Arthur told him, licking his lips.

Merlin watched the gesture but nodded, hand fumbling for the handle of the door.

Arthur sighed at him fondly and reached over to open it himself, face coming in close to Merlin’s so that he could whisper, “see you tomorrow.”

Merlin nodded at him, dazedly getting out of the car and walking up to his house, unlocking the door and glancing back once before going in.

Arthur politely waiting until the door closed all the way to give himself a victory fist pump…


End file.
